Tom, I agree with Kathy in every way.
I believe you said you had your LR in a tub with a heater and a powerhead. I don't recall how long you had it in there, but it might have been long enough for whatever die off there was to cure your rock and you wouldn't see any spikes in the ammonia, 'trite, 'trate cycle.
What happens to the good bacterial colonies if there is nothing for them to feed on (or in our case, process) such as detritus, waste product from fish, etc.? The bacteria will die just like a fish would without food.
These bacterial colonies will grow within your tank. That's why it's not recommended to add large quantities of fish at one time. The waste they produce will be more than the biological colonies can handle. However, the increase in bio-load of more fish will cause your bacteria colonies to multiply and allow the system to gradually accept more of a bio-load (ie: more fish).
As your tank matures it will be easier to add more of a bio-load at the same time than it was at the beginning of your young system.
If you follow Kathy's well laid out plan, exercise patience (most important), and endure the pending other cycles, such as algae cycles (an inevitable and expected nuisance), you'll be well on your way to a reef system.
Also, please don't use other live animals to cycle your tank. It is inhumane. If the animal doesn't die it will go through pain and suffering. High ammonia can kill fish (that's why we cycle the tank to avoid this) or at the very least can burn their gills.
You've been great with your methodical and systematic approach to starting your system. I applaud you for that and also for asking questions BEFORE doing things.
swimmer
